“Liquefaction” Key to Much of Japanese Earthquake Damage

The massive subduction zone¹ earthquake in Japan caused a significant level of soil "liquefaction"² that has surprised researchers with its    1    severity, a new analysis shows.

"We"ve seen localized³ examples of soil liquefaction as extreme as this before, but the distance and    2    of damage in Japan were unusually severe," said Scott Ashford, a professor of geotechnical engineering⁴ at Oregon State University⁵. "Entire structures were tilted and sinking into the sediments," Ashford said. "The shifts in soil destroyed water, drain and gas pipelines⁶, crippling the utilities and infrastructure these communities need to    3   . We saw some places that sank as much as four feet."

Some degree of soil liquefaction⁷ is common in almost any major earthquake. It"s a phenomenon in which soils soaked with water, particularly recent sediments or sand, can lose much of their    4    and flow during an earthquake. This can allow structures to shift or sink or    5   .
    But most earthquakes are much    6    than the recent event in Japan, Ashford said. The length of the Japanese earthquake, as much as five minutes, may force researchers to reconsider the extent of liquefaction damage possibly occurring in situations such as this⁸.

"With such a long-lasting earthquake, we saw    7    structures that might have been okay after 30 seconds just continued to sink and tilt as the shaking continued for several more minutes," he said. "And it was clear that younger sediments, and especially areas built on 8 filled ground, are much more vulnerable."

The data provided by analyzing the Japanese earthquake, researchers said, should make it possible to improve the understanding of this soil    9    and better prepare for it in the future. Ashford said it was critical for the team to collect the information quickly,  10   damage was removed in the recovery efforts⁹.

"There"s no doubt that we"ll learn things from what happened in Japan¹⁰ that¹¹ will help us to reduce risks in other similar    11   ," Ashford said. "Future construction in some places may make more use of techniques known to reduce liquefaction, such as better compaction to make soils dense, or use of reinforcing stone columns."

Ashford pointed out that northern California have younger soils vulnerable to liquefaction ---on the coast, near river deposits or in areas with filled ground. The "young" sediments, in geologic terms, may be those    12    within the past 10,000 years or more. In Oregon, for instance, that describes much of downtown Portland, the Portland International Airport and other cities.

Anything    13    a river and old flood plains is a suspect¹², and the Oregon Department of Transportation has already concluded that 1,100 bridges in the state are at risk from an earthquake. Fewer than 15 percent of them have been reinforced to    14    collapse. Japan has suffered tremendous losses in the March 11 earthquake, but Japanese construction  15   helped prevent many buildings from collapse ---even as they tilted and sank into the ground.

词汇：

subduction /sʌb"dʌkʃən/ n．俯冲        

sediment /"sedimənt/ n．沉积；沉淀物

liquefaction /likwi"fækʃən/ n．液化       

infrastructure /"Infrə,strʌktʃə/ n．基础设施

geotecnical /dʒiəu"teknikəl] adj．岩土技术    

compaction /kəm"pækʃən/ n．压紧的

vulnerable /"vʌlnərəbl/ ad]．易受伤害的

注释：

1. subduction zone：俯冲带。亦称下降带、潜没带、消亡带。板块构造说认为，当大洋板块移动并与大陆板块相遇时，由于大洋板块岩石密度较大，地位也低，便俯冲到大陆板块之下，这一俯冲部分叫做俯冲带。俯冲带两侧板块会聚边界称会聚边缘（convergent boundary)。俯冲带上面反映震源活动的地带称“贝尼奥夫地震带（Benioff seismic zone)"。

2. soil "liquefaction"：土壤液化。土壤液化现象是指由于孔隙水压力上升，有效应力减小所导致的土壤从固态到液态的变化，饱水的疏松的粉、细砂土在振动作用下突然破坏而呈现液态的现象。

3. localized：小范围的

4. geotechnical engineering：岩土工程。

5. Oregon State University：俄勒冈州立大学，建校于1858年，位于美国俄勒冈州科瓦利斯，全校设11个学院，80多个专业，尤以农科和工程最为突出。2008年俄勒冈州立大学的核能工程专业在全美大学中排名第9名。

6. water, drain and gas pipelines：自来水管道、排水管道和煤气管道。"water, drain and gaspipelines” 即“water pipelines, drain pipelines and gas pipelines"。

7. some degree of soil liquefaction：某种程度的土壤液化

8. to reconsider the extent of liquefaction damage possibly occurring in situations such as this：本句的意思是：重新审视类似这次（持续时间长的）地震中因土壤液化而可能造成的毁坏的规模。

9. recovery efforts：重建工作

10. that we"ll learn things from what happened in Japan：我们将从日本的地震中学到很多东西。该句是同位语从句，说出前半句no doubt的内容。

11. that：that引导的是定语从句，修辞前半句中的things。

12.suspect：被怀疑对象。文中指的是那些疑似危险的土壤。

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A:unless B:until C:after D:before

One Good Reason to Let Smallpox Live

　　It’s now a fair bet that we will never see the total extinction of the smallpox virus. The idea was to cap the glorious achievement of 1980，when smallpox was eradicated in the wild, by destroying the killer virus in the last two labs that are supposed to have it — one in the US and one in Russia. If smallpox had truly gone from the planet, what point was there in keeping these reserves?

　 1   reality, of course, it was naive to   2   that everyone would let   3   of such a potent potential weapon.¹ Undoubtedly several nations still have   4   vials.   5  the last “official” stocks of live virus bred mistrust of the USandRussia,²     6    no obvious gain.

Now American researchers have    7    an animal model of the human disease,opening the   8   for tests on new treatments and vaccines. So once again there’s a good reason to   9   the virus —just in   10   the disease puts in a reappearance.
　　How do we   11   with the mistrust of theUSandRussia?   12   Keep the virus   13   international auspices in a well-guarded UN laboratory that’s open to all countries. TheUSwill object, of course, just as it rejects a multilateral approach to just about everything. But it doesn’t   14   the idea is wrong. If the virus   15   useful, then let’s make it the servant of all humanity — not just a part of it

词汇：
smallpox /"smɔːlpɒks/ n.天花

cap /kaep/vt.结束;覆盖

killer /"kɪlə/ n.杀死物;杀人者

potent /"pəʊt(ə)nt/ adj.有效力的;强有力的

vial /"vaɪəl/ n.小瓶

mistrust /mɪs"trʌst/ n.不信任，怀疑

auspices /"ɔːspɪsɪz/ n.赞助;支持

注释：

1.In reality, of course, it was naive to imagine that everyone would let go of such a potent potential weapon.当然,想象每个人都会放弃这样一种有效的潜在的武器事实上是幼稚的。
2.And the last “official”stocks of live virus bred mistrust of theUSandRussia...:美俄最后的“官方”活病毒储备引起大家对这两个国家的不信任。 

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A:need B:case C:necessity D:time

Diet, Alcohol Linked to Nearly One Third of Cancers
　　Diet is second only to¹ tobacco as a leading    1    of cancer and, along with alcohol, is responsible for nearly one third of cases of the disease    2    developed countries, a leading researcher said on Tuesday.
　　Dr. Tim Key, of the UniversityofOxford, told a cancer conference that scientists are still discovering how certain foods contribute to    3    ，but they know that diet, alcohol and obesity    4    a major role.
　　“Five percent of cancers could be avoided    5    nobody was obese,” he said.
　　While tobacco is linked to about 30    6    of cancer cases, diet is involved in an estimated 25 percent and alcohol    7    about six percent.
　　Obesity raises the    8    of breast, womb, bowel and kidney cancer, while alcohol is known to cause cancers of the mouth, throat and liver. Its dangerous impact is    9    when combined with smoking.
　　Key told the meeting of the charity Cancer Research UK    10    other elements of diet linked to cancer are    11    unknown but scientists are hoping that the EPIC study, which is comparing the diets of 500,000 people in 10 countries and their risk of cancer, will provide some    12    .
　　Early results of the study have revealed that Norway,SwedenandDenmarkhave the the    13    consumption of fruit and vegetables among European countries while lta1y andSpainhave the highest. Eating at    14    five portions of fruit and vegetables a day is recommended to reduce the risk of cancer.
　　Key , principal scientist on EPIC study, said it is looking at dietary links to some of the most common cancers    15    colorectal, breast and prostate.

词汇:

obesity /ə(ʊ)"biːsɪtɪ/ n.肥胖

obese /ə(ʊ)"biːs/ adj.肥胖的

breast /brest/ n.乳腺

womb /wuːm/ n.子宫

bowel /"baʊəl/ n.肠

kidney /"kɪdnɪ/ n.肾脏

liver /"lɪvə/ n.肝脏

Denmark /"denma:k/ n.丹麦

dietary /"daɪət(ə)rɪ/ adj.饮食的

colorectal /,kəʊləʊ"rekt(ə)l/ adj.结肠直肠的

prostate /"prɒsteɪt/ adj.前列腺的

注释：

1、second only to：仅次于

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A:whether B:why C:that D:if

 A Success Story

1. What makes Ben"s story all the more remarkable ... : 使得 Ben 的故事更引人注意的是…...
2. It was his ability to consistently overcome difficult challenges ... : 正是他持续不断地克服困难 挑战的能力…

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A:put B:ran C:made D:set

Traffic in Our Cities

     The volume of traffic in many cities in the world today continues to expand. This causes many problems, including serious air pollution, lengthy delays, and the greater risk (1) ______ accidents. Clearly, something must be done, but it is often difficult to persuade people to (2) ______ their habits and leave their cars at home.

     One possible (3) ______ is to make it more expensive for people to use their cars by (4)______ charges for parking and (5) ______ tougher fines for anyone who (6) ______ the law. In addition, drivers could be required to pay for using particular routes at different times of the day. This system, (7) ______ as “road pricing”, is already being introduced in a (8) ______ of cities, using a special electronic card ______ (59) to the windscreen of the car.

    Another way of (10) ______ with the problem is to provide cheap parking on the (11)______ of the city, and strictly control the number of vehicles allowed into the centre1. Drivers and their passengers then use a special bus (12) ______ for the final stage of their journey.

Of course, the most important (13) ______ is to provide good public transport. However, to get people to (14) ______ the comfort of their cars, public transport must be felt to be2 reliable, convenient and comfortable, with fares (15) ______ at an acceptable level.

词汇：

lengthy /"leŋθi:/ a．漫长的，冗长的

persuade /pə"sweid/v．说服，劝服

approach /ə"prəutʃ/ n．方法，途径

windscreen /"windskri:n /n．汽车挡风玻璃

outskirt /"aut,skə:t/ n．郊区，市郊

reliable /ri"laiəbl/ a．可靠的，可信赖的

注释：

1.    ... strictly control the number of vehicles allowed into the centre: ……严格控制进人城市中心的车辆数量

2.    …public transport must be felt to be…：……公共交通必须要让人感觉到……

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A:doing B:handling C:dealing D:solving

The Difference between Man and Computer

    What makes people different from computer programs? What is the missing element that our theories don"t yet (1) ______ for? The answer is simple: People read newspaper stories for a reason: to learn more about (2) ______ they are interested in. Computers, on the other hand, don"t. In fact, computers don"t (3) ______ have interests; there is nothing in particular that they are trying to find out when they read. If a computer (4) ______ is to be a model of story understanding, it should also read for a "purpose".

    Of course, people have several goals that do not make (5) ______ to attribute to computers¹. One might read a restaurant guide (6) ______ order to satisfy hunger or entertainment goals, or to (7) ______ a good place to go for a business lunch. Computers do not get hungry, and computers do not have business lunches.

    However, these physiological and social goals give (8) ______ to several intellectual or cognitive goals. A. goal to satisfy hunger gives rise to goals to find (9) ______ about the name of a restaurant which (10) ______ the desired type of food, how expensive the restaurant is, the location of the restaurant, etc. These are goals to (11) ______ information or knowledge, what we are calling(12) ______ goals. These goals can be held by computers too; a computer (13) ______ "want" to find out the location of a restaurant, and read a guide in order to do so (14) ______ the same way as a person might. While such a goal would not (15) ______ out of hunger in the case of the computer², it might well arise out of the "goal" to learn more about restaurants.

词汇：

element /"elimənt/ n．元素，成分，要素

entertainment /,entə"teinmənt/n．娱乐，消遣

physiological/,fiziə"lDdʒikəl/ adj．生理学的，生理的

intellectual /,intə"lektjuəl/ adj．智力的，聪明的

cognitive/"kDgnitiv/ adj．认知的，认识上的

注释：

1.    …attribute to computers…：……把……归于电脑，归属于电脑……

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A:orders B:sells C:supports D:serves

Look on The Bright Side

    Do you ever wish you were more optimistic, someone who always (1) ______to be successful? Having someone around who always (2) ______the worst isn"t really a lot of (3) ______.We all know someone who sees a single cloud on a sunny day and says, "It looks (4) ______rain."But if you catch yourself thinking such things¹, it"s important to do something (5) ______ it.

    You can change your view of life, (6) ______to psychologists. It only takes a little effort, and you"ll find life more rewarding as a (7) ______. Optimism, they say, is partly about self-respect and confidence, but it"s also a more positive way of looking at life and all it has to (8) ______. Optimists are more (9) ______to start new projects and are generally more prepared to take risks².

    Upbringing is obviously very important in forming your (10) ______ to the world. Some people are brought up to (11) ______too much on others and grow up forever blaming other people when anything (12) ______wrong. Most optimists, on the (13) ______hand, have been brought up not to (14) ______failure as the end of the world一they just (15) ______with their lives.

词汇：

optimistic /ˌɒptɪˈmɪstɪk / adj．乐观的，乐观主义的

psychologist /saɪˈkɒlədʒɪst / n．心理学家

rewarding /rɪˈwɔ:dɪŋ / adj．有益的，值得的，有报酬的

upbringing /ˈʌpˌbrɪŋɪŋ /n．教养，养育，抚育

obviously / ˈɒbviəsli / adv．明显地，显然地

blame / bleɪm /v．责备，归咎于

注释：

1.    …catch yourself thinking such things………发现自己在想这样的事情……

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A:opinion B:attitude C:view D:position

The First Bicycle

    The history of the bicycle goes back more than 200 years. In 1791, Count de Sivrac (1) ______ onlookers in a park in Parisas he showed off his two-wheeled invention, a machine called the celerifere. It was basically an (2) ______ version of a children’s toy which had been in (3) ______ for many years. Sivrac’s “celerifere” had a wooden frame, made in the (4) ______ of horse, which was mounted on a wheel at either end¹. To ride it, you sat on a small seat, just like a modern bicycle, and pushed (5) ______ against the (6) ______ with your legs — there were no pedals. It was impossible to steer a celerifere and it had no brakes, but despite these problems the invention very much (7) ______to the fashionable young men ofParis. Soon they were (8) ______ races up and down the streets.

    Minor (9) ______ were common as riders attempted a final burst of² (10) ______. Controlling the machine was difficult, as the only way to change (11) ______ was to pull up the front of the “celerifere” and (12) ______ it round while the front wheel was (13) ______ in the air. “Celeriferes” were not popular for long, however, as the (14) ______ of no springs, no steering and rough roads made riding them very uncomfortable. Even so, the wooden celerifere was the (15) ______ of the modern bicycle.

词汇：

count /kaʊnt / n．伯爵

onlooker /ˈɒnlʊkə / n．观众

pedal /"pedl / n．踏板，脚蹬子

steer /stɪə /v．驾驶，操纵，控制

brake /breɪk/ n．闸，刹车

burst /bɜ:st /v．爆发，突发，爆炸

spring /sprɪŋ / n．弹簧

rough /rʌf / adj．粗糙的，不平整的

注释：

1....which was mounted on a wheel at either end:……两端都装上了轮子

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A:velocity B:energy C:pace D:speed